MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Queen Elizabeth II to meet Pope Francis in April during her visit to Italy

Since holding the title of Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England, the Queen has met with all popes.

The Queen of England will meet Pope Francis at the Vatican in April during a visit to Italy. Queen Elizabeth II, the formal head of the Church of England, will meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican on April 3 during the one-day visit to Italy.

 Both the Pope and the Queen are heads of churches struggling to square increasingly marginalized teachings on sexuality with members who are pushing for change.

In a statement, Buckingham Palace explained that the queen is traveling to Italy for a previously scheduled meeting with the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano, and notes that, “In the interim, a new Pope was elected and Her Majesty will now use this visit as an opportunity to meet His Holiness Pope Francis for the first time”.

The Argentine media has made it a point to underline that the visit to the Vatican to meet Argentine born, Francis, will be taking place a day after the Argentine military invasion of the Falklands which triggered a 74-day conflict with Britain.

Queen Elizabeth II, as head of the United Kingdom, holds the title of Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. At the advice of the prime minister, she appoints bishops in the Church of England. The Church of England approved the consecration of openly gay bishops in 2013, provided that gay individuals remain celibate, according to the Guardian, and while it is considering rules changes that would permit same-sex marriage, according to Religion News Service, late last month the church postponed any decision.

The Queen signed a law establishing marriage equality in the United Kingdom in June 2013, with a provision that allowed the Church of England to opt out of recognizing the unions.

Elizabeth II has not explicitly mentioned LGBT people in her more than 60 years on the throne. According to Pew Research Centre, 84% of people in Great Britain agree that ”gay men and lesbians should be free to live their own lives as they wish.“

The queen had previously visited the Vatican during the reign of Pope Pius XII when she was Princess Elizabeth, during a state visit in 1962 to meet with Pope John XXIII, and twice during the pontificate of Pope John Paul II, according to Vatican Insider. She welcomed Pope Benedict XVI to Scotland in 2010. The meeting with Pope Francis will be informal, eschewing the trappings of an official state visit.

The Church of England is part of the Anglican Communion, a global Christian denomination with about 77 million members, whose liberal members in western countries have clashed with conservative members in Africa over LGBT issues and women’s ordination in recent years.

The Queen's Communication Secretary issued the following on the visit: ” The Queen, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh, will visit Rome on Thursday 3rd April. Her Majesty and His Royal Highness are visiting at the invitation of the President of Italy, President Napolitano.

“The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh will visit the Presidential Palace where they will attend a private lunch hosted by The President.

”Following the private lunch Her Majesty and His Royal Highness will have an Audience with His Holiness Pope Francis at the Vatican”.